so low a flat that from the deck it could scarcely be seen.  In crossing this bay, our depth of water was from thirty to twenty-two fathom, with a white sandy bottom.  At noon, we were about three leagues from the shore, in latitude 25 deg. 84’ S., longitude 206 deg. 45’ W.:  Double Island Point bore S. 1/4 W. and the northermost land in sight N. 1/4 E. This part of the coast, which is of a moderate height, is more barren than any we had seen, and the soil more sandy.  With our glasses we could discover that the sands, which lay in great patches of many acres, were moveable, and that some of them had not been long in the place they possessed; for we saw in several parts, trees half buried, the tops of which were still green; and in others, the naked trunks of such as the sand had surrounded long enough to destroy.  In other places the woods appeared to be low and shrubby, and we saw no signs of inhabitants.  Two water-snakes swam by the ship:  They were beautifully spotted, and in every respect like land-snakes, except that their tails were broad and flat, probably to serve them instead of fins in swimming.  In the morning of this day, the variation was 8 deg. 20’ E., and in the evening, 8 deg. 36.  During the night, we continued our course to the northward, with a light breeze from the land, being distant from it between two and three leagues, and having from twenty-three to twenty-seven fathom, with a fine sandy bottom.

At noon on the 19th, we were about four miles from the land, with only thirteen fathom.  Our latitude was 26 deg. 4’, and the northermost land in sight bore N. 21 W., distant eight miles.  At one o’clock, being still four miles distant from the shore, but having seventeen fathom water, we passed a black bluff head, or point of land, upon which a great number of the natives were assembled, and which therefore I called Indian Head:  it lies in latitude 25 deg. 3’.  About four miles N. by W. of this head, is another very like it, from whence the land trends away somewhat more to the westward:  Next to the sea it is low and sandy, and behind it nothing was to be seen, even from the mast-head.  Near Indian Head we saw more of the natives, and upon the neighbouring shore fires by night, and smoke by day.  We kept to the northward all night, at the distance of from four miles to four leagues from the shore, and with a depth of water from seventeen to thirty-four fathom.  At daybreak, the northermost land bore from us W.S.W. and seemed to end in a point, from which we discovered a reef running out to the northward as far as we could see.  We had hauled our wind to the westward before it was light, and continued the course till we saw the breakers upon our lee-bow.  We now edged away N.W. and N.N.W. along the east side of the shoal, from two to one mile distant, having regular soundings from thirteen to seven fathom, with a fine sandy bottom.  At noon, our latitude, by observation, was 20 deg.26’, which was thirteen miles to the northward of the log: